Animal welfare campaigners have pledged to pursue civil proceedings against a teenager accused of systematically abusing livestock near Marseille, branding him a “barbarian” following his arrest by French authorities.
The Animal Protection Association (SPA) announced it would join legal action after a 19-year-old Afghan national was charged with multiple counts of cruelty to domesticated animals in Pennes-Mirabeau, Bouches-du-Rhône. The organisation thanked police for their intervention in the case, which has shocked the rural community.
Prosecutors allege the suspect conducted a campaign of sexual violence against goats and sheep belonging to local farmers, with attacks documented since early this year. The accused appeared before a magistrate on Saturday, April 11, who remanded him into pre-trial custody ahead of a scheduled court hearing two days later.
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of three years imprisonment and fines reaching €45,000 under French legislation protecting domesticated animals from abuse.
The breakthrough in the investigation came after multiple livestock owners reported discovering their animals had been assaulted during overnight hours. Farmers in the area noticed injuries to their sheep and goats during February and March, with the creatures found restrained and bearing evidence of sexual attacks, according to La Provence newspaper.
Frustrated by the recurring incidents, property owners installed motion-activated surveillance equipment across their land to capture footage of the intruder. The recordings showed a young male figure approaching the animals under cover of darkness, providing crucial evidence that investigators used to identify a suspect matching the description.
Officers from the anti-crime brigade (BAC) detained the individual during the night of April 9-10 following the intelligence gathered from the camera footage and witness statements from affected farmers.
The case echoes similar incidents reported elsewhere in Europe in recent years. German authorities in Bavaria arrested a 52-year-old Turkish asylum seeker in 2024 after surveillance footage captured him attacking ponies at a stable in Oberneufnach. The property owner’s family interrupted the assault and pursued the perpetrator until police arrived.
A separate investigation near Hamburg in 2023 resulted in charges against a 27-year-old man filmed assaulting an 18-year-old pony named Carrie at approximately 1am. Surveillance cameras recorded the suspect entering the premises and attacking the animal.
French prosecutors have emphasised the seriousness with which such offences are treated under national animal welfare legislation.
